After a highly anticipated and successful inaugural LAUNCH last year, Ventura Education Partnership (VEP) is excited to announce details for the second annual LAUNCH and Aera Energy as the returning Trail Blazing Sponsor. Taking place on March 12, 2020 at 5:30 pm, Rubicon Theatre in Ventura, community members can attend this inspiring evening by sponsoring the event at VenturaEducationPartnership.org.
Curated by Ventura Education Partnership, LAUNCH celebrates VUSD educators who share their passions in novel ways and create new learning opportunities for students. During this unique gathering of business, community and school leaders, Three featured Educators will present their ground breaking ideas that inspire classroom innovation. Driven to help students express themselves and their ideas, Cameron Crouch, Foothill High School, teaches art creation through a wide variety of mediums and media. Petra McCullough of ATLAS Elementary teaches with the hope that her love of learning is contagious. She has created an environment for students to enter where they can leave the stresses and worries of life at the door. Committed to providing opportunities that focus on equity, Kristie Steinlicht, teacher, Anacapa Middle School helped create the award-winning Anacapa STE(A)M program to serve Anacapa’s socio-economically, culturally, and linguistically diverse populations.
In addition to being an inspiring evening and connecting with leaders who care about public education, LAUNCH raises funds for VEPGrants. VEPGrants give VUSD teachers the opportunity to apply for $1,000 grants for a project that will engage students more deeply in their learning, something hands on and innovative.
Aera Energy’s presenting sponsorship will support 10 classroom grants in the Fall. “Aera is committed to building stronger communities by focusing on education and creating opportunities for innovative learning,” says Michele Newell, Aera public affairs. “Our work producing the fuel that California needs everyday requires that same innovation and creative thinking to do it safely and responsibly. We believe teachers and schools can do so much more if we come together as a community to support them in ways that helps get students excited about learning at an early age.”
2019 Featured Educator, Alex Wulff says, “We all need a time to revel in the power of grassroots community support and its impact on our youth. Attending LAUNCH is like a tune-up for the soul. Seeing what community efforts can do to impact innovation in the classroom is positively therapeutic.”
Additional LAUNCH sponsors include Mountains2Beach Marathon, Fastsigns of Ventura, Adela Trainor of Berkshire Hathaway and Mathnasium Ventura. For tickets visit the website www.venturaeducationpartnership.org or contact Madhu Bajaj (805) 754-9861.
